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“I didn’t really know what to expect and was completely blown away from the moment we touched down,” he says. Ben’s itinerary included everything from market visits—where he discovered wild-goose charcuterie—to snowmobiling on top of a glacier. Here, he shares his favorite hotels, most memorable culinary adventures, and one-of-a-kind shops for unique souvenirs.

“Dill is located in an old Nordic House, right next to the cultural center of Reykjavik. Chef-owner Gunnar Gíslason’s menu is is the embodiment of new Nordic cuisine. We chose the 7-course menu with wine pairings (a new menu is created each week). Highlights included freshly baked bread served with whipped lamb fat, as well as a dish of arctic char with butter, birch, mushroom, and fresh cheese. The dessert featured Skyr, Iceland’s take on yogurt, served with meringues.”

PHOTO BY BEN DAITZ

Hyper Locavore Cooking in Hôfn

“Pakkhús is a newer restaurant overlooking the harbor in Höfn, a town in southeast Iceland. The menu emphasizes local ingredients from the surrounding Vatnajökull region. Highlights were the langoustine pizza, the lamb carpaccio, and a really interesting dessert of licorice créme brulée.”

PHOTO BY BEN DAITZ

Inventive Casual Dining in a Luxe Eco Hotel

“Silfra Restaurant is reason alone to book a stay at Ion Hotel in Selfoss, where the restaurant is housed. The menu was wildly creative with dishes such as glazed lamb shank with pickled cauliflower, cauliflower puree, grilled leek and mustard glaze, and craft beers like the Icelandic white ale, Einstök Ölgerð. Skyr is the base of so many Icelandic desserts. Here skyr was turned into ice cream and topped with brown sugar meringue and birch, and another dessert reimagined Skyr as a foam paired with sorrel granite.”

PHOTO BY BEN DAITZ

Room with a Glacier View

“Fosshotel Vatnajökull is in the southeast part of Iceland. We stayed in room 020 Heffellsjökull, which was a mountain view suite. The suite was large and simply decorated allowing the huge windows to steal the show with their mountain and glacier views. A highlight was a large bathtub in the middle of the room.”

Best Hotel Bar

“101 Hotel in Reykjavik is super stylish. They didn’t have any rooms available but that didn’t prevent us from taking advantage of the hotel’s great bar scene.”

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